MEET MATILDA…
We now have a 2015 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 3500, Long Wheel Base. Our third van since our vanlife journey began and we love it!
Love! Love! Love it!…
We always wanted a Sprinter and when the opportunity arose, we jumped! Thoughtfully named Matilda, unsure why we called her Matilda, but we did. She had one previous owner from new and had done just 30,000km’s when we took the keys! The motorhome market in New Zealand is truly a sellers market, with a high demand and high prices to suit. Generally when vans are put up for sale, they sell quick, so we acted fast when we saw this one and we were lucky to secure Matilda.
Sprinters are quite common here in Aotearoa, a lot of rental companies use them and a lot of second hand Sprinters are ex-rentals with many km’s on the clock. As we plan to tour for a long time, (and are living in the van full time), low km’s was essential in our search. We see the popularity of these Sprinters a real benefit, pretty much every mechanic across Australasia will have some understanding and parts are easy to come by.
Our van was professionally fitted out by Action Manufacturing and originally purchased from TrailLite. She has a very similar layout in the camper to many of the LWB Sprinters in New Zealand and it really works. As we’re not currently comfortable enough to do a self-build, and this layout was what we have wanted for a long time, this was the best option for us.
Having a seperate seating area, and a bed we can leave up all the time, was one of our ‘must haves’, so if one of us wanted to get up whilst the other slept, this was possible. A bathroom with toilet and shower was another! Previously having to pull out our portable loo, or walk to the closest toilets is not fun…
SOME SPECS.
2015 Mercedes Sprinter LWB. 2.2 Litre Turbo Diesel engine, automatic transmission. 3 certified seats whilst driving. Certified self-contained. 3 Berth (our now permanent rear bed and front fold down single bed). Swivel driver and passenger seats with separate seating area at the front. Can convert to a u-shaped lounge at the rear. Three gas burner cooktop with extractor fan. Slide out gas BBQ on the exterior. 9kg gas bottle in external compartment. 110 litre Waeco fridge. Suburban hot water heater. Webasto diesel heater. Wet room with shower and Thetford toilet. 100 litre fresh and grey water tanks (underneath chassis). 3.7 metre Fiamma Awning. 12v TV with DVD player and automatic satellite dish. Rear bluetooth stereo & speakers. 550 watts of solar with epever solar charge controller. 2 x 100 amp hours deep cycle batteries. Votronic battery monitor. And lots and lots of storage…
The great thing about purchasing a van already kitted out and ready to go with the layout and extras we have always wanted, is that we have been able to customise and alter things with ease…
VAN TOUR: TAKE A PEEK
CHANGES WE HAVE MADE
Wheels & Tyres
Our previous tyres were decent commercial tyres with a high load rating, however since buying Matilda, we actually got bogged twice, so decided to upgrade to some bigger all-terrain tyres. We like going off the beaten track and we often find ourselves on long unsealed roads which are not alway ideal for our van.
It took us a lot of research into what tyres to get as there are regulations In New Zealand which dictate that we could only go 5% bigger without the need for certification. We ended up buying some Toyo Open Country II All Terrain 245/70R16. These are about 5% bigger than our current tyres, and have lots more grip. They also give us some more much needed ground clearance. I then decided to sand and paint our current steel rims, as this was the cheapest and easiest option for us, and in our opinion looks just as good as buying new mags.
Bike Rack & Ladder
Our most recent addition to our van! After much research we decided to buy the Thule Elite Van XT bike rack in matte black! This rack requires NO DRILLING and after testing is super stable. For the ladder (AGAIN NO DRILL) we went for the Cruz rear fitting ladder. This just clips onto the top and bottom of the door and can be removed easily! We are so happy with the finished look of these additions!
The Cab / Cockpit
Our 2015 Sprinter came as standard with a small head unit and an old, not very user friendly separate sat nav stuck on top of the dash. Didn’t like it. After a lot of research, we decided on an Android Automotive Infotainment System. We went for the Atoto s8 Ultra Plus, their flagship model. With a 10.2 inch screen, built in google maps (offline too) and wireless Apple car play. We fitted it ourselves and after a couple of hiccups, it has proven to be perfect for us, and the customer service ATOTO provide is epic. Very important.
This is a spacious Cab, we love it. Large random storage compartments and the swivel seats are awesome, (we really wanted swivel seats to fully utilise the cab space). We can both stand up straight in the cab too, so much head height… unnecessary head height?? We thought so. So, after some more research and a long time waiting for deliveries, we put a storage shelf in above the drivers and passengers seat. Game changer! We purchased a DIY kit from VanConcept in the U.K. which came with custom brackets and a stencil to cut out a shelf from plywood. It looks great and adds lots of easy access storage.
At the rear, as standard there is a u-shaped dining area with plenty of room for 4 or 5 people to sit. This converts into a bigger than kingsize bed! We decided that we did not need the lounge, and preferred to keep the bed up all the time as we HATE making the bed every day. Also by sleeping ‘East to West’ and making the bed smaller, we are still able to have two seats at the rear and extra, valued floor space!
Window Blinds
Matilda came with what we call ‘granny curtains’. Since our van has a total of 11 windows, the flowery curtains dominated and dated our space. We played around with numerous ideas of replacing these, and eventually found a company who make custom van shades. Nowhere in New Zealand or Australia makes these so we purchased from Vanmadegear in the US. These are a total GAME CHANGER. These fabric and foam covers fit perfectly into each window and stay in place with very strong magnets. They provide excellent insulation, fold up easily and stay in the window. And a plus, they are complete blackout and provide excellent privacy!
Electrics & Solar
Matilda came with 100 watts of Solar, which I instantly wanted to improve! We took the van into AA Solar in Silverdale and these guys were great and after some moving around of aerials on the roof, they fitted a 455 watt solar panel! Making a total of 555 watts of solar! Now we never need to plug into power and the batteries are quickly recharged.
Since we upgraded our solar, we needed a way to monitor our battery more closely as we just had an old fashioned voltmeter to look at. We had fitted a Votronic battery monitor with shunt which displays a very accurate battery state, and we now know what uses lots of power and when we may be getting low (never low so far thanks to the solar!!)
We have also recently upgraded our 8 year old house batteries!! From 200 amp hour deep cycle lead acid batteries to 312 amp hour deep cycle lead acid! Again these batteries were purchased from AA Solar at a great price. We did consider lithium batteries, however we would have needed to change our chargers too and even though these would be ideal, we couldn’t justify the price at the moment.
Bed Build
Our bed came with a U shaped lounge with foam swabs that we kept set up as a bed all the time. After around 10 months of living full time in the van we yearned for extra storage as well as having a proper bed.We decided to raise the bed significantly, giving us so much more storage underneath, as well as extra height from the windows, as well sleep east to west! This was definitely one of the best upgrades we have done on the van!
~CHECK OUT OUR BED BUILD VID BELOW~
Sliding Door Fly Net
Being bitten throughout the night is not fun. We searched all over the net to try and find some custom flyscreens for the sliding door on our Sprinter. We eventually found some from an awesome company in Aussie, Southern Spirit, Vantastic!
These fly nets are amazing as they fit behind the weather seal of the door, meaning NO BUGS can get it. They also protect from the smallest of insects (midges). Best of all, unlike many other custom screens on the market, they won’t break the bank, at just over $300 NZD. Check them out here!
Rear Door Fly Net
For our rear door, we searched high and low for the right product, and we eventually found some awesome magnetic flyscreens AND thermal blanket for the back from a company called VannCamp. These provide superb privacy, so we don’t have a problem opening the rear doors to show what’s inside, and they also keep out any nasties! The great thing is, unlike most rear screens on the market, they can easily be removed, which is great if we are parked somewhere beautiful and want to admire the whole view out of the back! Check these awesome screens out here!
Bathroom
For our bathroom, we didn’t want to be making wholes in the wet room walls and wanted something that would look sleek to hold our essential toiletries. We found a company called Tooletries who make shower storage compartments made totally of silicone. They stick to the wall and we can peel and re-stick whenever we feel like it!
Thanks for reading! Hope to see you on the road! Stay Safe. Ngā manaakitanga
Be sure to check out our Facebook, Instagram and Youtube channel!
